This month, I’m endeavouring to read and review what’s left of my review pile. I haven’t been getting too many books for review, so I think I owe it to these wonderful publishers to get them all done in the next week and a half. I think I’ve talked enough about the top book, so I’m not even going to bother mentioning it.

Burn by Paula Westonis the final book in the Rephaim series. Second blog tour I’m participating this year (the first one was for the third book in the same series). It stops here on June 15th. I’m absolutely scared to read this book.

Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyleris the third book in the Hogarth Shakespeare series. This is her interpretation of The Taming of the Shrew. It has a meddling father trying to save his Russian assistant by marrying his daughter off to keep the Russian in America. Hilarity ensues.

Opportunity Knocks by Alison Sweeneyis about one woman’s entanglement with a celebrity chef. It sounds like a lot of fun, and I’m really hoping to enjoy this novel. I normally have a rule against reading celebrity-written books, but that’s not going to dampen my curiosity.

Remember that time when I said, yeah. I’m going to cut down my On the Night Table posts to monthly instead of weekly because I’m unable to keep to the schedule? Well, life’s just been full of interruptions lately that I’m barely keeping to the monthly posts as well. I’ve decided that I’m going to keep my reading queue to the barest minimum. So this month, my focus is on these three books along with others that I’ve been attempting to finish for months now.

The Mistake I Made

The Raven King

We Are the Ants

I’ve read The Mistake I Made a few months back but I didn’t write a review for it. Part of my goals for the next few weeks is to go back and write reviews that I owe. This is one of those books. I’m about three-quarters of the way to finish my reread. It’s about this single mom who found herself in a bind and had to prostitute herself to this rich man. Eventually, it leads to a murder investigation. It’s a good book and Ms. Daly rights with ease that reading (and re-reading, for that matter) it was a cake-walk.

The Raven King needs no explanation.

I’ve heard so many great things about We Are the Ants that I simply must add it to my reading pile for May. I must say that aliens have held very little appeal to me since the dawn of time, but I’ll bite. I want to see what this book is made of.

Have you read any of these books?

DISTRACTED

I find it odd that the more time I have on my hands, the less I feel inclined to read anything. As a result, I’ve fallen way behind on my for review pile and feeling the crunch of time slipping away from me. For April, I’ve made a deal to myself to remove temptation from the equation. Which means, Netflix is banned for the time being. Because that is the root cause of my laziness nowadays.

echo…echo..echo

You will probably recognize three of the books on my pile this month: The Immortals, Shylock is My Name, She’s Not There. That’s because I had them up last month, but I didn’t get to read them. I’ve added the third and final book to The Passage series by Justin Cronin (The City of Mirrors) – which I’ve been reading off and on for the last few days.

CURRENTLY READING

To be honest, I’ve not been in an ideal frame of mind so my reading habits are taking a toll. Right now, I’ve been stuck reading Pillars of Light by Jane Johnsonfor almost a couple of weeks now. It’s a book set in the time of Crusades, and while I like the story, it’s just not moving fast enough for me. But I’m halfway done, so I think I’ll see through the end.

I’m playing catch up again. These books are February releases that I didn’t get to, but after these three books, I’m home free! Until May, that is. I can finally tackle some of the books on my TBR shelves and maybe keep listening to the audio books that are left unlistened to as well.

Here are the Goodreads summaries for these books:

A lifetime ago, every year Carole Shipley looked forward to her wedding anniversary. But then a celebratory trip to Mexico for the occasion with her husband and friends ended in the unsolved kidnapping of her infant daughter, Samantha. Now, fifteen years after that horrific time, divorced and isolated, Carole is forced to relive the kidnapping by reporters who call every year on the anniversary of Samantha’s disappearance. However, this year when the phone rings, Carole hears the sweet voice of a girl claiming to be her long-lost daughter. Plunged back into the world of heartbreak, suspicion and questions that led the case to run cold so many years ago, Carole doesn’t know what or who to believe. But when she starts to figure it out, she finds the answers dangerously close to home.

MANHATTAN HAS MANY SECRETS.

SOME ARE OLDER THAN THE CITY ITSELF.

Manhattan.
The city sleeps. Selene DiSilva walks her dog along the banks of the Hudson. She is alone-just the way she likes it. She doesn’t believe in friends, and she doesn’t speak to her family. Most of them are simply too dangerous.

Murders.
In the predawn calm, Selene finds the body of a young woman washed ashore, gruesomely mutilated and wreathed in laurel. Her ancient rage returns. And so does the memory of a promise she made long ago. To protect the innocent-and to punish those who stand in her way.

Gods.
With the NYPD out of its depth, Selene vows to hunt the killer on her own. But when classics professor Theo Schultz decodes the ancient myth behind the crime, the solitary Huntress finds herself working with a man who’s her opposite in every way. Together, they face a long-forgotten cult that lies behind a string of murders, and they’ll need help from the one source Selene distrusts most of all: the city’s other Immortals.

Winter, a cemetery, Shylock. In this provocative and profound interpretation of “The Merchant of Venice,” Shylock is juxtaposed against his present-day counterpart in the character of art dealer and conflicted father Simon Strulovitch. With characteristic irony, Jacobson presents Shylock as a man of incisive wit and passion, concerned still with questions of identity, parenthood, anti-Semitism and revenge. While Strulovich struggles to reconcile himself to his daughter Beatrice’s “betrayal” of her family and heritage – as she is carried away by the excitement of Manchester high society, and into the arms of a footballer notorious for giving a Nazi salute on the field – Shylock alternates grief for his beloved wife with rage against his own daughter’s rejection of her Jewish upbringing. Culminating in a shocking twist on Shylock’s demand for the infamous pound of flesh, Jacobson’s insightful retelling examines contemporary, acutely relevant questions of Jewish identity while maintaining a poignant sympathy for its characters and a genuine spiritual kinship with its antecedent—a drama which Jacobson himself considers to be “the most troubling of Shakespeare’s plays for anyone, but, for an English novelist who happens to be Jewish, also the most challenging.”

I’m especially excited for the last book because it’s the latest installment to The Hogarth Shakespeare series. What about you? What’s on your night table this month?

Coming in late in February, I know. But with all the stuff that happened at the beginning of the month, reading was the farthest from my mind. So this week, I thought I might as well do one of these posts since I’m still unemployed and I might have a better chance at actually sticking to this list. These books are all for reviews, and I’m feeling a little bad for not giving them any attention sooner than I should’ve. But it’s all good, here is now and all that. I really want to get these out of the way so I can concentrate on the ones I’ve been eyeing on my shelves.

I just started reading Dark Days Club over the weekend, but I didn’t get too far ahead. The Widow is Penguin’s book club choice and since I’ve not read it, I’m not even able to join in the conversation over at Goodreads right now. Fail. Pillars of Light is supposed to be romance – right up my alley. Black Apple is historical fiction based on the Aboriginal children that were taken from the homes by the government to get schooling outside of the Reservations. I’m curious about this one because it’s a heated topic of conversation in Canada right now.

READ

It’s been a great week for reading. I finally finished The Impostor Queen after a very slow start. City of the Lostwas a great mystery from the queen of Canadian mysteries herself. He Will Be My Ruinwas surprisingly good despite the lack of romance. Patient Zero was soo good. I cannot believe I put off reading this book. I’m hunting for the next book now.

I’ve been behind on my Goodreads Challenge, but I manage to keep pace this week! Let’s hope I can continue the streak.

What about you? What’s on your night table this week?

ADDENDUM

Lately, I’ve been thinking more and more about embracing Minimalism in my life. I’ve been reading up on it. Though whenever I see the piles of books everywhere in my house, I can’t help but feel like I’m dying inside.

A Life Minimized is a blog that’s currently in the works. If you’re interested in this lifestyle, give it a follow so you can join me in my quest to declutter my life. There is no post yet, but you can at least, read the ABOUT ME section.

For the better part of 2015, I have been somewhat successful with sticking to a reading schedule. Admittedly, I also put an added pressure on myself by posting one every week. This year, I decided to do some changes. I’m no longer going to post one every week. Instead, I’ll decide what to read for the entire month ahead of time, prioritizing books I’ve gotten for review regardless of their publication date. I’ve noted the date of publication for each review copy on my organizer so I can better keep track of my priorities.

So here are the books I wanted to read for this month. And if by chance I finish these off halfway through the month, then I can dig out my copies among my neglected piles all over my house.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. Published back in September. Most of you have probably read this already, but you know how I’m always fashionably late. Especially if the book is from the fantasy genre.

He Will Be My Ruin by KA Tucker. For review from Simon & Schuster Canada. This book will be out February 2nd. I adore this author and have had successes from her books in the past. I can’t wait to read this!

The Widow by Fiona Barton. For review from Penguin Random House Canada. A bit of suspense thriller in time for Valentine’s Day. Oh, the horror.

Compulsion by Martina Boone. I started this book back on my Christmas break, so I’m more than halfway through. I’m not gonna lie, the heroine is irritating.

Impostor Queen by Sarah Fine. For review from Simon & Schuster Canada. I can’t seem to find a good stride with this book. Hopefully, I’ll have it read by the time this post goes up.

Read in December

This is the saddest month of reading for me. And can you believe that I was on holidays for the latter part of December? This is what happens when you’re way ahead of your Goodreads Reading Challenge. You stop reading. Five books? So pathetic! In my defence, Winter was so long. But holidays, you know? I should’ve done better. Sigh.

Good luck with your January reads, peeps!

It’s been a while since I’ve done of these, and based on my track record, I’ve rarely succeeded on sticking to my reading plans on a weekly basis. Especially with the kind of struggle I’ve been going through lately. Let’s hope I’ll be able to do better this week.

On the mend

The last few weeks had been so difficult. And as much as I don’t want to whine about it on the blog, I think at this point, it’s quite unavoidable. Reading and blogging has been severely affected, so I feel like I have no choice but to mention it. I entertained the fact of taking a break on the blog, but I fear that if I did, I won’t find the strength to come back. Depending on how today goes (my first day on a different job), I’m hoping I can at least put this career-on-a-limbo business to rest. So yesterday, I sat down and gave myself a stern talking to. I need to girl up and snap out of this nonsense. I decided enough is enough. I’ve made choices – wrong and right ones in the past, so it’s time to swallow this pill.

Dangerous Lies by Becca Fitzpatrick

This book came in the mail last week when I desperately needed something to perk myself up. I don’t know much about it, but I know that it’s been garnering some attention. Have you read this one yet? Did you like/hate it? I hope it’s good, because I need to pull myself out of this reading funk.

Staring at the walls

I’ve always imagined how my life would be like if I’m not tied to a job. I imagined blissful days of doing nothing but read. That’s certainly not been the case. I’ve done nothing but contemplate about life. Ugh. Here I go again channeling Debbie Downer. Lol. Anyway, thanks again for not giving up on me, even though I wanted to give up on myself.

Death and the Girl He Loves by Darynda Jones | Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky

It sure feels like I’ve been away for so long! How have you all been? Sorry for the short disappearing act there over the weekend. We were at the cabin for the first time in weeks. I lost my internet connection ever since Apple upgraded to Yosemite, so I have not been able to blog while were there. Long tedious story. Any who, if you’ve noticed that I didn’t have a Hoarders post this past weekend, it’s because I didn’t buy any books. I’m trying my best to stay away from bookstores nowadays as money is tight, and I’m trying my best to help my husband keep to our budget. He did promise that I can get a couple of books this week though. I know it’s not very feminist of me to have to depend on my husband for money. But that’s not true at all. It’s this thing called, “marriage”. Where you not only marry the person you love, but it also means the marriage of two incomes. So if you know what’s good for you, don’t get married! Haha. Kidding. 🙂

Anyway, that’s what’s going on with my personal life.

I have been reading quite a few books while I was fully immersed in reality. That’s at least the good news. I haven’t been distracted enough to stop reading. Goodness knows I don’t need a reading slump right now. Sigh. Sandra Brown once again occupied much of my time, but I’ve also read some wonderful books that I can’t wait to share with you all. As of this writing, I have 6 unread Sandra Brown left in my shelves. Which means, I have to prowl the thrift stores for more. Wish me luck!

Read

The Coincidence of Coconut Cake by Amy E. Reichart

Overruled by Emma Chase

Killer Instinct by S.E. Green

Standoff by Andrew Smith

Surviving Ice by K.A. Tucker

Bream Gives Me Hiccups by Jesse Eisenberg

The Mistake I Made by Paula Daly

Night Owls/The Anatomical Shape of a Heart by Jenn Bennett

Where There’s Smoke by Sandra Brown

Sustained by Emma Chase

The Witness by Sandra Brown

Slow Heat in Heaven by Sandra Brown

Smash Cut by Sandra Brown

Audible had a few books on sale for $4.95 each so of course I dare not resist downloading a couple. I’ve been hearing a lot about Sawyer Bennett, so I’m excited to listen to the first book of her Cold Fury series. I’m a huge fan of Jill Shalvis so I was so pumped to find this first book to her Wilders series. I’m going to listen to these two this week as well. Have you read these?

As for the books I chose this week, I’ve decided to finish Ms. Darynda Jones’ YA series. I enjoyed the first one, so I’m looking forward to reading the instalment. Suite Française was a recent book-to-film movie that I’ve not seen. I thought I’d do the next best thing and read the book.

That’s it for me! I’ve got some reviews this week including a couple of 5-star reads. A post about all the whys Sandra Brown’s books are so addictive. On Friday, please come back as I’ve recently taken pictures of my colour-coded shelves.

Yeah, I know. I bet you’re thinking these books look familiar. Well, that’s because I’d planned to read these books a couple of On the Night Table ago. I don’t want to make a habit of doing these posts only to recant them a week later, but sometimes, other books are just that darn distracting, you know?

Last week was an incredible reading week. Incidentally, I’ve surpassed my Goodreads reading goal of 150 for the year. Which is indicative of how great this year had been for me, reading wise. I’m going to double my effort this week, and will try to resist the call of other books.

Read

The Kommandant’s Girl by Pam Jenoff

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

Friction by Sandra Brown

Until Friday Night by Abbi Glines

What’s on your night table this week?

Planning what to read ahead of time typically works well for me. I get my ARCs and review copies done and sometimes, I’m able to squeeze some pleasure reading in between. Well, last week, when I got the email from Audible about The Bronze Horseman, I knew the books on my queue were done for. Because I’ve been watching and hoping that they’ll be available for download for the longest time, and I knew I would jump at the chance as soon they have it. So for the better part of my week, I was simultaneously reading and listening to the first book.

Epic doesn’t even come close. I loved it. I ranted about it on Twitter. I couldn’t get enough.

Needless to say, I’ve been obsessed. And probably will remain obsessed until I finished every single book from this series. This week, I don’t plan on reading anything else. I am, once again, behind by a week. Though that doesn’t necessarily mean I’m behind on blogging. I’m actually still quite a few days ahead. So I think I can afford to be distracted by my new favourite literary couple. Reviews for these books will be up some time next week.